Remembrance event on Pensacola Beach helps grieving families of lost loved ones

CLOSING CIRCLE AT PENSACOLA BEACH

VALERIE’S HOUSE PENSACOLA FAMILY

PENSACOLA BEACH, Fla. -- One in 11 kids in Santa Rosa and Escambia counties have lost a parent or a sibling.

Valerie's House in Pensacola says that's about 9 ,000 kids between the two counties. They offer grief counseling to kids and family members who've lost a loved one.

Since they opened three years ago, Valerie's House has helped 330 families and their numbers are growing.

They held a remembrance event on Pensacola Beach Thursday night. Families came together to honor and remember those they've lost.

Each of them had horrible stories of loss, but say Valerie's House has helped them overcome that grief.

"We help the kids identify some of the feelings that come up with grief," said Jennifer Elzweig, program manager at Valerie's House. "It can’t be messy whether you’re five or 50 and once they are able to start talking about some of those feelings we try to teach them some coping skills that they can use that can last them through their entire life. We do that by showing them that they’re not alone and introducing them to children who have similar experiences.”

Young Caysen lost both of his parents. Bennet and Asher lost their father in February.

10-year-old Frankie suddenly lost her mother when she was 7.

Her family says the loss has been hard. Her grandmother Tess now raising Frankie and her younger brother.

"Frankie came home from school ,her mom wasn't at the bus stop and they went in and unfortunately found her deceased," Tess Pease said. "Julian was there with her and it was really tough for all of us."

"It's really hard to talk about it, but it got better," Frankie Pease said. "I'm glad I came."

Linda Joiner lost her daughter Kayla Atwood to domestic violence. She was murdered back in January.

Joiner says the loss has been devastating.

"I couldn't breathe," she said. "I couldn't believe the way things happened."

Each of these families going through grief -- and each of them chose Valerie's House to help them.

The families say they feel a sense of community knowing they're not alone in their grief.

"I hope that they just feel a sense of community," Elzweig said. "I know that we’ve created space for them to grieve together because it’s a very human experience."

"To know I'm not by myself, I'm not the only one," Joiner said. "There's somebody else just like me that felt the pain and the loss that I feel."

Valerie's House offers free services.

Read the full article here: https://weartv.com/news/local/remembrance-event-on-pensacola-beach-helps-grieving-families-of-lost-loved-ones